World War II veteran gets a home makeover
By Ruth Schenk | .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Sixty-seven years ago, Charlie Lewis was in a German prisoner of war camp in Bad Orb, Germany, about 30 miles north of Frankfurt. Soldiers who liberated the
camp in April 1945 said that camp, where more than 4,000 Allied soldiers were imprisoned, was one of the worst. Photos taken when the Allied soldiers reached
the camp show emaciated Americans sitting by crosses marking the graves of their buddies.
Charlie survived 106 days in captivity.
Now in his late 80s, Charlie uses a motorized wheelchair to get around and cares for his son, Brent, who has cancer.
When Southeast member Lindsey Trent heard that Charlie and Brent needed help, she asked her small group to help. They began taking hot, home-cooked meals
to the house and checked on them often. When Trent learned they needed a new floor in the bathroom, she called Southeast member Bruce Williford, who knows a lot of skilled volunteers.
Soon a team of professionals knocked on Charlie’s door, tools in hand. What started as a one-day project to fix the floor has turned into a makeover by two area
churches: Southeast and Davidson Memorial United Methodist Church in Shepherdsville, where Charlie is a member.
Most every day, a crew shows up to work on the new bathroom and kitchen, and a couple from the small group stops by with a meal.
Charlie watches it in disbelief.
Brent, who is rail thin from chemotherapy, said he can’t believe it is happening.
“We could never do this ourselves,” he said. “All these extra things weren’t in my prayers. They are a huge bonus.”
Volunteers have made the house a priority.
Southeast member Todd Hastings patched drywall in the new bathroom. He works on Charlie’s house while looking for work to support his own family. He
understands hard times all too well as his wife, Vonda, also is battling cancer.
“The church has done so much for us that we pray for ways to give back,” Hastings said. “I hoped to give back financially, but work has become my way to give
back.”
Southeast member Mike Cleary worked on the new floor in the bathroom.
“I prayed that God would use the skills I have from 30 years of construction work to help somebody,” he said. “Charlie and Brent are my somebody.